Young Sheldon finale breaks huge four-year ratings record

CBS’ mighty little man garnered a massive audience, with the Young Sheldon series finale beating its own four-year ratings record.

Last Thursday, Young Sheldon fans were forced to part ways with The Big Bang Theory prequel after its divisive Season 7 finale; some have branded it “disappointing”, while others were left emotional by the closing episode.

The outpour of devastated social media posts and tributes following George’s death should have made it clear: Young Sheldon’s fanbase is bigger than you think, so its finale was among one of the biggest TV events of 2024 thus far.

Its viewership was a testament to that: as per Nielsen’s final same-day ratings (which crucially doesn’t include its streaming performance on Paramount Plus), it fetched 9.32 million viewers on Thursday night.

CBS

This is the show’s biggest audience in four years; more specifically, since its Season 3 finale on April 30, 2020. The series closed with a two-parter, with Episode 13 amassing 9.15 million viewers, slightly less than Episode 14.

It comes off the back of Young Sheldon being the most-watched network comedy on US television for five consecutive seasons.

However, its audience was once much bigger: Season 1 averaged more than 16 million viewers per episode, according to The New York Times, and ratings started to plummet after its third season. Netflix became its unexpected savior, with its streaming ratings beating Suits, Grey’s Anatomy, and even Bluey.

The question is, will Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage live up to the success of its predecessors? Young Sheldon had the advantage of its Big Bang Theory connection, but the upcoming spinoff will illustrate the franchise’s popularity — for better or worse.

You can catch yourself up with our breakdown of Young Sheldon’s ending, as well as everything we know about Young Sheldon Season 8, and why the Young Sheldon finale wasn’t even about George or Sheldon at all.